A Bond Unbroken
by ThymeWaster
Summary: They were destined to be together, but fate drove them apart. Now, after three years in exile, and on the run, can they finally be together and have everything they ever wanted?
1. Prologue

This is just the prolouge for a story that has been in my head since I started watching Avatar. If I get enough interest, I will post the actual story, but I make no promises as to when. I am having a LOAD of computer right now, and I can't seem to get time to post.

Disclaimer: I don't own it. If I did, the waterbender would actually exist.

WARNING: Yes, I have sunk to that level. No, you don't know what that level is yet. BUT: Be appauled. Be very appauled.

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**A Bond Unbroken**

**Prologue**

The white hot intensity of the afternoon sun mirrored itself in the fountain at her feet. It glared over her shoulder at the pool of water and seemed to smirk at the fraction of a person she had become. She stared at her reflection, her hair only inches long, having been cut short not a week earlier, her eyes, which were the dark blue of a moonless summer night, glimmered with the only spark of hope she had left in her entire conscious.

A small tear trickled down the side of this lone girl's face. It seemed to her as if half of her had been cut away from her with the blade of a double edged sword. On the one edge lay the freedom that she had been given, yet on the other was the sacrifice of the one person in the world who understood her.

The heat she felt was stronger than any she had ever felt before. The fire seemed to flow through her veins, and she felt him near her. Her connection to the Firebender was stronger than any other bond ever seen, and it went back to the day they were born.

_The trees flowed like ocean waves as Amira wandered slowly through the empty swamp. She scanned the trees and pools for her husband. She had felt the contractions early that morning and she now knew that it was almost time for her baby to enter the world. _

_Another contraction came, and she yelled out in pain. It hurt more than any other had, and soon she found herself piled in a heap on the ground. Fortunately, her cry had been heard by her husband Zhao. _

_Soon she was in his arms, and safely carried back to their small hut. He started a fire and smiled down at his wife, preparing for the delivery of his first child._

_At the same exact time, far to the west of that desolate swamp, another child was entering the world…_

_Ursa groaned and rolled over onto her side. _If this is what childbirth is like, then I'm never having kids again! _She thought to herself as another contraction hit. They had begun that morning, and she had been under close watch by the royal midwife ever since. Soon a fierce pain ran through her body like fire and she screamed aloud. It was enough to cripple her for several minutes, before the midwife told her it was time to deliver. _

_Ozai waited outside the door listening to his wife's cries and pacing the large room. His face showed no emotion, and his pacing was more out of a lack of seating than nerves. Suddenly a scream could be heard from the other side of the massive door. He glanced in it's direction, and then continued his pacing. _

The young Firebender looked up at the full moon high in the night sky. The breeze that chilled the night air floated past him and sent a shiver down his spine. His short hair fluttered gently over the large scar on the left side of his face.

The stars were reflected in the water, and on any other night, in any other place, he would have admired their beauty. But this night, on a refugee ferry, he could not help but feel that they were laughing at him and what he had become.

Though the laughter he heard came from her voice inside his memories. Her laugh flowed like a rushing stream, and as he remembered it he felt the flow of it run through him like the feel of swallowing something extremely cold. It chilled his every bone and yet he welcomed the feel. The young waterbender was someone he missed deeper than it could be imagined.

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You get the idea, review please!


	2. The Beginning

I realize that the prologue was not much to interest you, so here is chapter 1. Same thing applies, review, I post.

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**Chapter 1**

**The Beginning**

_Eight Years Earlier…_

Ami stood in the large marble hall and stared at the wall of fire that hid the face of the Fire Lord. A sage stood in front of his throne, and was speaking in a low monotone voice that she had begun ignoring ages ago.

She felt weighed down by the amount of cloth present in the dress she had been sewn into that morning. At eight years old, she could dress herself, or so she thought, until two women came in and roughly tied her into a red, silk dress that, to her, was the size of a tent. Her hair had been yanked into three buns in a triangle pattern at the back of her head, and she couldn't wait to take them out.

Around her sat many people, some she knew, like her father who was sitting behind her and some were complete strangers, like the teenager sitting next to her. He was amazingly tall to her, and though they had not said a word to each other yet, she felt like he might be kind, and he had winked at her as they had entered the room.

Behind him was another man, much older, who she assumed was the teenager's father. It only made sense, since her father was behind her. She didn't see any women in the room, but that didn't bother her too much. She had never been around women for long periods of time, and when she was they usually had something mean to say about her hair or her clothes, so she avoided them most of the time.

Suddenly a large gong was rung across the room, and the young man next to her stood up. She stood too, and he smiled at her in approval. She had done something right, for once. The Sage bowed to them, and she and the young man bowed in return. Then everyone filed out of the room, much to slow for Ami's taste.

Her father took her aside once they had left the room, and the teenager joined them. "This is Lu Ten." He said to her, bowing low to the young man. "You are to be his bride someday."

Lu Ten bowed to them, and then reached out and put his hand under her chin. She wasn't sure if she liked it, but she didn't want to offend someone so tall. He smiled at her, "I stopped paying attention during the ceremony too." He laughed, and she decided it was a nice laugh.

"How did you know I wasn't paying attention?" She asked, not remembering that she wasn't supposed to speak in front of men. He just laughed again.

"Because I looked over about halfway through and you're deep blue eyes were completely lost. I don't think you could ever hide anything, those eyes will give you away." The man who had been sitting behind him walked up and placed a hand on his shoulder. "I must be going," Lu Ten began "I'm sure we will see each other around." He winked, and then walked off towards a group of generals.

"Zhao?" A woman's voice called from not to far off. Ami knew her dad's name, and was surprised to hear it called. Normally women were looking for her, and usually to dress her.

"Ursa, what a pleasant surprise." Zhao said to the woman who was approaching them. She was sweet looking, and she didn't look like she had a comb hidden in her sleeves, though her sleeves were big and billowy, they could have had anything in them.

"I want you to meet my son, Zuko. He is about Ami's age." A boy with a ponytail was standing next to her; he seemed disinterested in the whole introduction. Ami smiled politely, but she didn't think to bow. Her father placed his hand on her back and pressed, hard. She bent over from the pressure, and then realized that this boy must be a prince.

The adults began to talk, and she stared awkwardly at Zuko. She couldn't say anything until he addressed her, and so she waited for him to speak. He looked around the room with an odd disinterest. To him, she seemed like just another palace girl, like his sister and her friends. He looked down at his feet, hoping that the adults would stop talking soon, but knowing that they wouldn't.

Finally, he looked directly into her eyes. She gave him a tiny smile, but he didn't see it. She didn't see the frown that he gave her either. All they could see were each other's eyes. Deep blue and bright gold, they seemed to swim in each other's eyes. They didn't say a word from that moment on, but they both knew that they were bound to be friends.

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Yeah yeah, I know, cheesy eight year old fluff. But I have to give backstory before I get to the REAL stuff.

Preview of Chapter 2:

_..."Ami, what are you doing out in the middle of the night with my cousin?" Lu Ten said as he rubbed her head and smiled. Zuko walked forward and followed protocol in bowing slowly. _

_Lu Ten was tall and muscular, though he still carried an air of youth about him. His hair was in a knot at the top of his head, and he wore full fire nation armor. _

_"We were just playing." Ami said in the sweetest voice she could conjure. _

_"Isn't there enough time to do that during the day? Or is my bride hiding something from me?" He bent over and stared into her eyes with a reproachful look. She blushed lightly and looked away from him. She had a hard time lying to him, seeing as he was her hero. "But that's not what I came to tell you."..._

If you want to know what's going on, REVIEW!


	3. The Beginning of the End

I'm... sorry...? There really is NO excuse for my behavior. Abandoning you all since April is really mean and really stupid. I WISH I could make up for it. I have been wracked with guilt ever since I left for Europe at the end of May. But my summer has been overcrowded and I didn't have my own computer until this weekend. I finally got my laptop and now I can upload again. But if you want to abuse me that's completely understandable.

ANYWAY...

I got the most amazing review of this story. I was completely blown away, but I didn't know who sent it! They sent in an anonymous review and I couldn't write them back to thank them. I loved it though, and if you haven't read my review's page here is what it said:

"your writing reads like poetry, yet its still interesting in the actual content. I wanna see what comes next!  
you rock"

I printed this review off and pinned it to the wall above my desk. Whoever you are, Thank you SO much, it was amazing to hear that.

Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar, I'm ticked that the third season won't follow my plotline, and Zuko never joined back with Azula.

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**Chapter 2 **

**The Beginning of the End**

_Three Months Later…_

"Zuko... Zuko wake up…" The prince heard a soft voice whispering to him while he slept. He rolled over and moaned, opening his eyes slightly to see Ami on her knees on the side of his bed. She had a hand on his shoulder and was fully dressed.

"What?" he moaned at her unhappily. He sat up slightly and rubbed his eyes.

"I have to show you something, get dressed, and hurry!" she pulled him out of bed by one arm and then waited outside his bedroom door while he got dressed.

It was late in the night and the moon was full, as the two ran out into the courtyard Zuko noticed that the guards were either missing or asleep. In the past three months since Ami had come to live with his family, the young prince had made a tried and true friend.

She fought back against all the confines of court life when it was just the two of them, and now she was wearing the least amount of clothing she could get away with, and her hair was completely untamed. She never pulled her hair into any constraint if she could help it.

They reached the pond in the middle of the courtyard and Ami stopped. "Ok, watch closely." She breathed, closed her eyes and took a fighting stance that Zuko had never seen before.

She began to move her arms back and forth, and he watched closely, not seeing anything strange besides her movement. "What? You woke me in the middle of the night to show me you can move your arms? Big whoop."

"Don't watch me you dunderhead! Watch the water." She started again and this time he watched the water, which began to move with her.

"What the heck?!" She stopped moving and so did the water, she turned to him and grinned.

"Cool huh?"

He stared blankly at her. Then suddenly began yelling. "NO! You can't be a waterbender! In case you haven't noticed, you are a FIRE princess!"

"Shut up!" She whispered loudly as she jumped on him and covered his mouth. "I know!"

"Then why on earth did you say it was cool?"

"Because it means I'm not nuts for hating this whole royalty thing! It's not who I am!" She stood and smiled, her hair blowing around her face. Suddenly there was a voice from the shadows and the sounds of footsteps as someone approached.

"What are you two doing out this late?" It was the voice of a young man, about the age of sixteen. Ami ran up to him and wrapped her arms around his waist in a gigantic hug.

"Lu Ten!" she exclaimed loudly. Indeed it was her betrothed, and she was not supposed to be hugging him, but she couldn't help herself. She actually adored the young man.

"Ami, what are you doing out in the middle of the night with my cousin?" Lu Ten said as he rubbed her head and smiled. Zuko walked forward and followed protocol in bowing slowly.

Lu Ten was tall and muscular, though he still carried an air of youth about him. His hair was in a knot at the top of his head, and he wore full fire nation armor.

"We were just playing." Ami said in the sweetest voice she could conjure.

"Isn't there enough time to do that during the day? Or is my bride hiding something from me?" He bent over and stared into her eyes with a reproachful look. She blushed lightly and looked away from him. She had a hard time lying to him, seeing as he was her hero. "But that's not what I came to tell you."

"I am leaving in the morning for Ba Sing Se, and I don't know when I'll be back." He put a hand on Zuko's shoulder and began speaking in a much more serious manner. "If anything happens to me, I want you and Ami here to watch out for each other." He put Ami's hand in Zuko's and smiled uncertainly at them. "Never let go of each other. No matter how hard they try to rip you apart, never let go."

Ami's deep blue eyes watered heavily, and soon tears were rolling down her cheeks with intense speed. "Please don't go!" She wailed through sobs. "If you do, I'll be all alone here!" He kneeled in front of her and she buried her head in his shoulder.

He ran his hand over her head, and shushed her in the most comforting tone he could achieve. "It's ok." He said quietly. "You're never alone, I promise." He held her close and let her cry.

Zuko watched this with mild curiosity; he had never seen a girl cry before. His mother had never cried around him, even when his sister was born. And his sister and her friends never cried; probably because they were too busy annoying him. He wanted with all of his heart to comfort his friend, but he didn't have a clue what to say. His cousin looked at him and smiled warmly.

That smile gave Zuko the courage to put his hand on Ami's back and begin speaking. "He's right, I'll be here. I promise, I'll always be here." These words seemed to comfort her more than Lu Ten's, and she smiled and wiped her face dry.

"I have to go now," Lu Ten began, extracting himself from the crying girl and standing slowly. "But I promise I'll be back." He smiled wide, and pushed Ami's hair out of her face. "It won't take long for us to break through that wall, and I'll be back before you know it."

"Ok." She said softly. He bowed to them and then began walking away, but paused and turned back to them.

"Now go to bed you two; before the guards wake up!" He called across the courtyard. Zuko and Ami smiled at each other and then ran back to the palace and off to their rooms. Zuko was sad to leave the warm night air, and his best friend, but as he fell asleep, he forgot all about the secret reason she had woke him up so late.

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War, Death, and Waterbenders. How much COOLER can you get? Next chapter isn't even closed to finished. Bear with me, I promise it won't be months...


	4. Broken Hearts, Broken Lives

This chapter is sad. I had a hard time writing it. I cried a few times. Wow, I'm emotional lately...

Anyway, I hope you all enjoy it. It's very important. No fluff here!

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Chapter Three**

**Broken Hearts, Broken Lives**

_Six Hundred Days After the Start of the Siege of Ba Sing Se…_

"Your cousin, Lu Ten, did not survive the battle." Ursa choked out as she began to cry. Her thoughts were spinning. Her husband would try to become heir, that poor girl would be sentenced to death. That was it; that was what she would address first. She dropped the letter to the ground under the tree she had been sitting under, and half-ran to the Fire Lord's chambers.

The room was large and the walls were filled with tapestries and engravings on every wall. As she entered the room, it was obvious that Fire Lord Azulon was in a state of shock over his grandson's death. Who could blame him? His Heir had no bloodline left, except through the girl. Ursa hesitantly approached the grieving man.

"You come at a most inconvenient hour." He said without looking up at her. He slumped in the chair in the room's farthest corner. She couldn't help but pity the man; he was so burdened by the war and now the questionable succession.

"I come with a request." She said slowly and carefully. This man had not become Fire Lord without reason. "The girl, Princess Amikara, she was betrothed to Lu Ten."

His eyes glowed at the mention of the departed boy's name, but he didn't say anything. He had enough patience left to hear her out.

"I want her betrothal changed. I want her to marry my son, Zuko." There, she had said it. It didn't matter that what she had just asked broke several laws. At least she had asked.

"You do know what that entails?" He uttered, trying to think over the ramifications of such a change. It was against the law for a man to marry his relative's widow. It was custom to kill the betrothed of a man who died in battle, and royalty never recycled spouses.

"I do. But this girl is different. She is special." She couldn't shake the feeling that this girl had a connection to her son, and that Lu Ten's death was no accident. "She knows him." She whispered to herself, not realizing she had said it aloud.

"Knows who?" Azulon's head snapped up. He understood Ursa's attraction to the little girl; no one could look into those eyes and feel any disproval of her.

"Huh?" Ursa woke from her thoughts, trying to remember what she had been saying about Ami. "Oh, well, she knows my son." She explained quickly.

"Yes, it would devastate the boy if she were…" he paused. "If the law were to be enforced." He thought about it for a long moment. He had seen the children playing and ever since the Princess had entered the palace she and Ozai's son had been attached at the hip.

"Could we?..." She trailed off. "Could we announce Lu Ten's death, tomorrow?" She had a plan in mind, and he could guess what it was.

"You want to switch the betrothal before Lu Ten is found dead?" A glimmer of hope flashed across Ursa's eyes as he said it. She understood that he just might help her. He paused for a moment, and then sighed. "Make the arrangements, I'll give my consent."

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

"How do I tell her?" Ursa asked herself as she walked the long slow trek to Ami's wing of the palace. She looked around her and saw only death and pain. There was no easy way out of this. She had no chance of breaking the news to the young princess without breaking her heart.

When she reached the door she paused before entering. She listened and heard giggles. The sound of her son's laughter warmed her heart. She opened the door quietly, a tear traveling hesitantly down her cheek as she saw the happiness she was about to end.

Zuko and Ami were sitting on her bed thumb-wrestling. As respectable nine-and-a-half-year-olds, they didn't play kids games. At least, not when they knew people were watching. Zuko's thumb pinned Ami's to his hand and he counted to five.

"Hah! I win!" He took his other hand and flicked her forehead. It was the winner's right. "I get to pick the next game! Let's play…" He trailed off, seeing his mother standing in the doorway.

"What?" Ami turned her head to see Ursa. She jumped off the bed and bowed low; her thick brown hair falling everywhere. "Princess Ursa, welcome." She said quickly and abruptly. She knew the protocol.

"Ami, there's something I need to speak with you about." Ursa looked over at Zuko and frowned. "Alone, please." Zuko took the hint and bowed low before leaving the room.

Ursa sat down in one of the armchairs that occupied the corners of Ami's room. Ami sat on the floor in front of her, listening intently as Ursa began explaining a very complicated situation.

"Normally, you would begin learning your place when you turned thirteen, but your situation has changed drastically." She paused, taking a deep breath and trying to hold back her own tears, knowing it was not her turn to cry.

"It is our duty, as wives of princes, to make sure our husbands have the most beneficial lives they can lead. Through whatever means necessary, we must guard them and gain for them, whatever is most beneficial for them. But, once we bear a son, it is then our highest duty to protect our son's future above all else."

"What are you telling me this for?" Ami asked, confused by her elder's somber tone and talk of duty.

"Because, your position has changed, Ami, Lu Ten is dead." She waited for the words to sink in.

Ami was stunned into silence for a long moment. Her mind tried to comprehend this single fact and kept repeating it over and over. Dead. Her hero was no more. Quiet tears ran down her face, but no other sign of crying came over her.

"You are no longer supposed to be alive. By all Fire Nation Laws, a man's wife dies when he dies." Ursa put a hand on Ami's cheek, attempting to comfort her. "There's hope though. I'm making arrangements for you to be betrothed to Zuko. You see, with Lu Ten gone, Zuko is now the heir. I think you will make a fine wife for him someday." She smiled comfortingly.

"You… you're keeping him safe aren't you?" Ami asked quietly. "As his mother, you have to protect him, and you know I can do that if you can't be here. Why are you leaving?" Ami looked into Ursa's eyes and Ursa couldn't lie to her.

"My husband will try to take Lord Iroh's place as next in line. As his wife, I have to help him get that. But if I do what is necessary, I will have to leave. I want you to keep Zuko safe for me. No matter what happens. Promise?"

Ami nodded silently. She didn't understand it all, but she understood that she had to keep Zuko safe. That was something she could do.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

The death of Fire Lord Azulon came as a shock to all but one. Iroh knew. He knew it was what was necessary. When Lord Iroh returned to see his brother on the throne he did not fight it. He took it upon himself to raise the children. He had always liked Ami and now he was fascinated by her.

He was also not an idiot. He realized what Ursa had done the minute he found Ami was betrothed to Zuko. He was proud of her. He wouldn't have wanted to sacrifice the girl either. She was precious to all of them now.

Now he was watching her sit by the pond in the courtyard absentmindedly running her fingers through the water, enjoying the cold wet sensation. She hummed to herself, it was a sad tune that he couldn't quite place.

He approached her quietly, but he knew she sensed him. He sat in front of her and met her eyes. They had lost some of their brightness but the blue still shone like sapphires. "What song is that?" he asked gently.

"I sang it the day we saw you off. The last time I saw him." She looked down at her reflection in the water and began singing quietly.

"_Leaves from the vine, falling so slow, like fragile tiny shells drifting in the foam. Little soldier boy, come marching home. Brave soldier boy, come marching home._"

They quietly cried together in the brilliance of the summer sun. The tears fell in honor of their broken lives.

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Eternity: Why do you keep ignoring me?

I just don't know what to do with you. You are an awsome character with no purpose.

Eternity: NOT TRUE! You have a plot for me now!

Yeah, but getting you there is almost impossible.

Eternity: Shut up.

Anyway, please review! I want to know what you think!


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